"The human predicament is thus truly terrible. The atheistic worldview is insufficient to maintain a happy and consistent life. Man cannot live consistently and happily as though life were ultimately without purpose, value or significance," he said. "If we try to live consistently within the framework of the atheistic worldview, we shall find ourselves profoundly unhappy. If instead we manage to live happily, it is only by giving the lie to our worldview. Atheism, therefore, cannot support a happy and consistent life."

A trailer for the upcoming documentary that’s called, yes, The Heretic, about the life and work of Rob Bell has just been released.
As Bell explains on Facebook, “A few years ago the filmmaker Andrew Morgan approached Kristen and I about making a documentary film about my work. We have great respe

I don’t think I need to explain how living out Luke 6:27-28 might look on social media. But then again I’ve seen so many professing Christians blast and demean non-believers on Facebook that it leaves me wondering. I’m not the first, and I’m not the last, but for the love of everything, stop making Jesus look awful on social media. Respond in love, hold your tongue/fingers, and walk away when you can’t do those things.

In the evolutionary model, mutations are hailed as a dominant mechanism
for pond-scum-to-people evolution and provide “proof ” that the Bible’s
history about creation is wrong. But are we to trust the ideas of imperfect,
fallible men about how we came into existence, or should we believe the
account of a perfect God who was an eyewitness to His creation? Let’s look
at mutations in more detail and see if they provide the information necessary
to support pond-scum-to-people evolution, or if they confirm God’s Word
in Genesis.

Christians today are facing more challenges than ever. The Poached Egg exists to equip Christians to meet those challenges and be more confident in their faith and become more effective witnesses for Christ. If you find these articles and posts useful, please consider partnering with me in 2018 to continue this work that God has laid on my heart. As someone once said, the Gospel is free, but someone has to pay for the plumbing. You can become a monthly partner for just as little as $5 a month (that’s only $60 a year), the price of a gourmet cup of coffee. Special one time gifts are welcome and encouraged as well. Will you help?

I have a question regarding those apologetics-discussions that come up when I am trying to share my Christian faith. Although I was raised in a fervently Christian home where I received a good education in the faith, and although I am currently studying philosophy at an excellent Christian academic institution (which has also been building up my faith, as my professors are doing a good job of relating sound philosophy to Christian faith), I find that I struggle with apologetics-discussions. I often find myself to be unable to formulate a ready reply on the spot - which distresses me, considering that 1 Peter 3:15 exhorts us to "always be ready to give an account for the hope that is in you." The problem seems to be that I am a slow thinker. I can usually come up with a good answer AFTER the fact, having given it some prayer and reflection, but I am often stumped for an answer on the spot.

Moral Dilemmas. Frank Turek explores the popular notion that moral dilemmas prove relative morality, when actually, they establish the existence of an objective moral standard. Please visit http://www.CrossExamined.org for more on Morality, Moral Dilemmas, and the concept of Objective Moral Law. Also, go to http://www.ImpactApologetics.com for more resources on Christian Apologetics and Christian Worldview, including the entire DVD of this teaching series.

Sometimes people try to justify their lack of intellectual engagement by asserting that they prefer having a "simple faith." But here I think we must distinguish between a childlike faith and a childish faith. A childlike faith is a whole-souled trust in God as one's loving Heavenly Father, and Jesus commends such a faith to us. But a childish faith is an immature, unreflective faith, and such a faith is not commended to us. On the contrary, Paul says, "Do not be children in your thinking; be babes in evil, but in thinking be mature" (1 Cor. 14.20 RSV). If a "simple" faith means an unreflective, ignorant faith, then we should want none of it. In my own life, I can testify that, after many years of study, my worship of God is deeper precisely because of, and not in spite of, my philosophical and theological studies. In every area I have intensely researched—creation, the resurrection, divine omniscience, divine eternity, divine aseity—my appreciation of God's truth and my awe of His personhood have become more profound. I am excited about future study because of the deeper appreciation I am sure it will bring me of God's personhood and work.

I was in a friendly mini-debate at a California college when the evolutionist interrupted me: “But creation can’t be scientific. Science deals only with things you can see and touch. Take energy, for example . . . .” Then he stopped. “Whoops! Made a mistake, didn’t I?” I hastened to agree. He, his students, and I all knew that there are forms of energy, like gravity, that you can’t see or touch or put in a bottle. Yet you know “gravity” is there (whatever it is!) because you can see the eﬀects it has on matter. Similarly, God is a Spirit and can’t be seen—but you can see His eﬀects on matter. Even the Bible tells us that “the invisible things of God are clearly seen in all the things that have been made” ( Rom. 1:20 ).

Guess what? Sagan was right (although it took a little more than a
decade). Sagan's second alternative, the oscillating universe model has been
discredited by a lack of sufficient matter to cause a contraction. 1 It was
further discredited by the discovery of dark energy, which shows that the
universe is actually expanding at an ever increasing rate. 2 So, Sagan's first
alternative is the one that turned out to be true. My guess is that he was
betting on the second. Of course, the atheists haven't lined up to become
Christians, but instead have invented their own form of metaphysics (i.e.,
religion). Atheists have invented the multiverse, a kind of super-universe
that randomly spews out other universes (with differing physical laws) at
will. The multiverse sounds scientific, but it is really philosophical
wishful thinking, since there is no evidence supporting the idea. If one
really thinks about it, the multiverse is impossible over the entire period
of eternity (which is what atheists would propose for the age of the
"invisible" part of our universe - if such a thing exists at all).

The heart of worship is our heart, delighting in Jesus and expressing praise to him for the true things the Scriptures teach us about who he is and what he has accomplished for us. It is, then, “all about” Jesus, not us. It involves us, but we’re at the periphery. He’s at the center. He’s the focus. It’s his commands we consider first, not our preferences. Redman’s song is about refocusing, and re-centering, and reminding ourselves why we worship — and who we worship.

That precious promise drives away anxiety and discouragement on those days when nothing seems to be happening in ministry, when I’m sowing but nothing seems to be growing. If I have been faithful, I can plant the seed and rest easy in Christ, knowing his Spirit will cause the seed to germinate and take root in human hearts, in soil made good by the Holy Spirit (see Mark 4:1-9). I need not pressure the people, harangue them, cajole them, or wring my hands in perplexity. This parable comforts me with the truth Luther understood, the truth that was the catalyst for one of the greatest revivals in church history 500 years ago: “The Word did everything, I did nothing.” Indeed.

Have you ever wanted to ask Greg a question on the broadcast but didn't know if you could get through? Ask your ? anytime on our broadcast page & we'll schedule you to talk to Greg live on Tuesdays from 4-6 p.m. Ask here:
https://www.str.org/training/broadcast … pic.twitter.com/yxNOz3pyTE

Okay I’ll play along. Like Hitchens, I’m an anti-theist I will say and prove there is no God. There is actually a lot of pretty clear and convincing evidence that God does not exist. Of course it’s difficult to prove a negative. However there are a lot of things that should or should not be true if God does or does not exist. For example there is no clear evidence of the existence of any gods which is not surprising of no gods exist. Arguments for God’s existence suffer from irreparable logical flaws, which should not be the case if there really is a God. Religion demands faith and discourages attempts to verify its claims through testing and experimentation. This fact is less surprising if there is no God. Religion has a history of intolerance and violence, and this not likely to be true if there is a God. Science is a very effective way of gaining knowledge. Revelation and scriptural study are not, as people disagree about both and this fact is more likely to be true if there is no God. Religion attempts to suppress outside examination and criticism, and this fact is less surprising if there is no God.

Joel Osteen Sees Own Shadow, Predicts Another Year Of Taking Bible Out Of Context http://babylonbee.com/news/joel-osteen-sees-shadow-predicts-another-year-taking-bible-context/ … pic.twitter.com/QJWivX8plX

We have often said that without the love and support of our church family, this trial would have taken us under long ago. And that’s not because Christ is insufficient; it’s because he has made us to need one another and to live in community together. God’s grace is always enough, but so often he intends for that grace to come to us through his people — the fellow believers who have committed to walk beside us in the church through the joys and sorrows of life.

God intends His Salvation to be a gift given without compensation. When we try to earn our way to heaven we become prideful and arrogant, judgmental and independent. When we deny God’s total work, we tend to start to think of ourselves as God, and this is a form of idolatry God will not tolerate. Maybe this is why those who have tried to earn (or purchase) the Gift of the Holy Spirit throughout the ages have been scolded by the apostles:

Today we had the honor of visiting w/Chuck Colson's beloved Patty Colson in Naples, Florida! We talked about EVERYTHING and I enjoyed every minute. An absolutely extraordinary woman and friend. @ColsonCenter @prisonfellowshp #SuperBowl2018 pic.twitter.com/OZGkRNNkqg

This morning we got to hear Pastor @HayesWicker of @FBCNaples preach! He explained that the Scriptures have 34 references to "Eagles" and 0 to "Patriots". So I'm convinced the score of the game MUST be 34-0, Eagles! The scripture is inerrant, is it not? Who's w/me? #SuperBowl2018 pic.twitter.com/45Y5YBR6PX

3) Don’t overstate that, or idealize that fact, because we know that houses were not the only venue for church gatherings. In 1 Corinthians 11:17 and 22, Paul says, “In the following instructions I do not commend you, because when you come together it is not for better, but for worse. . . . What! Do you not have houses to eat and drink in? Or do you despise the church of God and humiliate those who have nothing?” In other words, he is saying: You are getting together someplace other than your houses and you are eating in a way that shames those who don’t have a lot to eat and you brought a big basket and you are eating it. Go eat in your homes, not where we are gathering as church. So, it seems to me pretty clear that people were leaving their homes and going to some common place of assembly for gathering of the church service, whatever it was.

They added that they are concerned with the lack of healthcare available to the men as well as the worry that this is not an isolated incident: “We are aware of several other reported cases in which members of the Christian minority have received heavy sentences after being charged with ‘threatening national security’, either for converting people or for attending house churches,” they said.

We live in a world that increasingly strives to (supposedly) promote the idea of tolerance, but actually becomes intolerant of Christian absolutes as it does so. Whether it involves religion, behavior, or human sexuality, there is a growing anti-Christian sentiment in America and other Western nations. Ultimately, built into this “tolerance” is the concept that truth is determined by each individual, not by God. This has led many people to conclude that making judgments on anyone (especially coming from Christians) is wrong because the Bible says ” judge not ” ( Matthew 7:1 ). Interestingly enough, those who reject the notion of God or the credibility of the Bible often attempt to use God’s Word (e.g., by quoting verses out of context) to excuse their actions when they are presented with the gospel and the plight of sinners for rejecting it.

John and Ed call out “Catholic” Senators who supported late-term abortions, protestant “ministers” who blessed an #abortion clinic, and ask where all the “whole-life” #progressiveevangelicals have been when it comes to abortion. http://bit.ly/2nKWHyP pic.twitter.com/kw06ZwjQEy

Have you ever tried to pick a favorite hymn or Scripture passage when asked? Impossible, isn’t it? At least it is for me. I had similar feelings when my pastoral interns asked me to pick my top books every pastor should read. Too many to choose from and where does the list end? Nevertheless, they demanded this of me and I conceded.

When it was released 25 years ago this week, Groundhog Day was considered a romantic comedy. How then did it become one of the most spiritually significant films of our age?
Today, believers from almost every religious background consider the comedy to be spiritually meaningful—even though no one agrees on exactly what it means.
In 2003, director Harold Ramis told The New York Times , “At first I would get mail saying, ‘Oh, you must be a Christian, because the movie so beautifully expresses Christian belief.’ Then rabbis started calling from all over, saying they were preaching the film as their next sermon. And the Buddhists! Well, I knew they loved it, because my mother-in-law has lived in a Buddhist meditation center for 30 years and my wife lived there for 5 years.’”
All of them—Catholics, Jews, Hindus, Buddhists—are right about it being a spiritual film. And yet all of them are wrong, because they assume the meaning reveals something about their particular religion. The reality is that Groundhog Day resonates with so many diverse traditions because it reveals a universally received aspect of common grace.

“. . . the pattern of this world.” Pattern means the model of everything you’ve learned in life. If you want to change, you have to change your pattern or model of living that you learned in your life. You need to replace the old, unhealthy pattern with a new one modeled after the life of Christ.

Do we tremble? Why is it that prosperous Christians aren’t forming accountability groups like crazy to help us keep our lives free from the love of money (Hebrews 13:5)? We know that desensitization to sexually immoral images or videos is dangerous to our souls, but are we at all in touch with the effects of wealth after many decades of being immersed in a prosperous culture? How has it affected us? How desensitized are we — especially in light of the fact that, according to the Bible, prosperity is at least as spiritually dangerous as pornography?

Greg is on a four-minute timer and answers questions about how we’ll all be able to spend time with Jesus after the resurrection, whether the Bible promises protection to Christians, and the books Greg reads. https://www.str.org/podcasts/strask-january-29-2018 … pic.twitter.com/zZeFFtAxFT

“In the “modern” condition, feeling will come to exercise almost total mastery over the individual. This is because people in that condition will have to constantly decide what they want to do, and feeling will be all they have to go on. Here lies the secret to understanding contemporary Western life and its peculiar proneness to gross immoralities and addictions. People are overwhelmed with decisions and can only make those decisions on the basis of feelings.”

The narrow focus recognizes that people are inconsistent. This is why you will find people who affirm the value and dignity of the homeless, or of people with special needs, and yet maintain a pro-abortion perspective. Likewise, you can find people who advocate for the rights of the unborn but say demeaning and derogatory statements about immigrants. We should push for holistic thinking in our churches, but strategically and politically, the best approach is to partner with anyone, however inconsistent in their thinking, as long as they want to protect the unborn.